Chia seeds

Chia is the edible seed of Salvia hispanica, a flowering plant in the mint family (Lamiaceae)
native to Central America, or of the related Salvia columbariae of the southwestern United States
and Mexico. Chia seeds are oval and gray with black and white spots, having a diameter around 1
millimetre (0.04 in). The seeds are hydrophilic, absorbing up to 12 times their weight in liquid when
soaked and developing a mucilaginous coating that gives chia-based creams and beverages a
distinctive gel texture.

Chia seeds on average contain 6% water, 42% carbohydrates, 16% protein, and 31% fat. The fatty
acids in chia seeds are highly unsaturated, with the major fats being linolenic acid (50–57% of total
fat) and linoleic acid (17–26%). The seeds are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and the B vitamins thiamin
and niacin.

There is evidence the crop was widely cultivated by the Aztecs in pre-Columbian times, and was a
staple food for Mesoamerican cultures. Chia seeds are cultivated on a small scale in their ancestral
homeland of central Mexico and Guatemala, and they are cultivated commercially throughout
Central and South America.

Typically, chia seeds are small ovals with a diameter around 1 millimetre (0.04 in). They are mottle-
colored with brown, gray, black, and white. The seeds are hydrophilic, absorbing up to 12 times their
weight in liquid when soaked; they develop a mucilaginous coating that gives chia-based creams and
beverages a distinctive gel texture.

Chia (or chian or chien) has mostly been identified as Salvia hispanica L. Other plants referred to as
"chia" include "golden chia" (Salvia columbariae). The seeds of Salvia columbariae are used
medicinally and for food.

In the 21st century, chia is grown and consumed commercially in its native Mexico and Guatemala, as
well as Bolivia, Argentina, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Australia. New patented varieties of chia have
been developed in Kentucky for cultivation in northern latitudes of the United States.

Seed yield varies depending on cultivars, mode of cultivation, and growing conditions by geographic
region. For example, commercial fields in Argentina and Colombia vary in yield range from 450 to
1250 kg/ha. A small-scale study with three cultivars grown in the inter-Andean valleys of Ecuador
produced yields up to 2300 kg/ha, indicating that favorable growing environment and cultivar
interacted to produce such high yields.[20] Genotype has a larger effect on yield than on protein
content, oil content, fatty acid composition, or phenolic compounds, whereas high temperature
reduces oil content and degree of unsaturation, and raises protein content.

The 16th-century Codex Mendoza provides evidence that it was cultivated by the Aztec in pre-
Columbian times, and economic historians say it may have been as important as maize as a food
crop. It was given as an annual tribute by the people to the rulers in 21 of the 38 Aztec provincial
states.[6] Chia seeds served as a staple food for the Nahuatl (Aztec) cultures. Jesuit chroniclers placed
chia as the third-most important crop in the Aztec culture, behind only corn and beans, and ahead of
amaranth. Offerings to the Aztec priesthood were often paid in chia seed.

Ground or whole chia seeds are used in Argentina, Bolivia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Paraguay for
nutritious drinks and food. Today, chia is cultivated on a small scale in its ancestral homeland of
central Mexico and Guatemala, and commercially in Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala, and
Mexico.

Dried chia seeds contain 6% water, 42% carbohydrates, 16% protein, and 31% fat (table). In a 100-
gram amount, chia seeds are a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of the B vitamins,
thiamin and niacin (54% and 59% DV, respectively), and a moderate source of riboflavin (14% DV)
and folate (12% DV). Several dietary minerals are in rich content, including calcium, iron, magnesium,
manganese, phosphorus, and zinc (all more than 20% DV; table).

The fatty acids of chia seed oil are highly unsaturated, with linoleic acid (17-26% of total fat) and
linolenic acid (50-57%) as the major fats.

Chia is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, as the seeds yield 25–30% extractable oil, including α-linolenic
acid. The composition of the fat of the oil may be 55% ω-3, 18% ω-6, 6% ω-9, and 10% saturated fat.